Chapter 28: The Girl Named Iwanaga Kotoko
Hearing the girl's words, Asagiri's expression didn't change at all. He kept that faint smile and replied calmly.
"Since you can think that far, you should understand why I suspected you might be a Banshee in disguise."
"That's fair. I really am the most suspicious one."
Rather than getting angry, the girl answered with an easy smile, as if the accusation amused her.
"You and the Player next to you are clearly a team who added each other as friends. The suited man and that heavily made up woman also claimed to be a team. If a Banshee can disguise itself as a Player, then having two Banshees among five Players would be a bit too harsh, wouldn't it?"
She tilted her head slightly, voice gentle.
"Also, someone like me, with no teammates, alone, and still daring to voluntarily sign up for a dungeon. If there aren't Banshees pretending to be Players, then there are only two possibilities left."
She raised a finger.
"First, I'm very foolish, but I think I'm very smart. Like that suited man who believes he can clear the dungeon easily and grab rewards like they're free samples."
Then she lifted a second finger, but before she could finish, Asagiri interrupted and said the rest for her.
"Second, you received a very high clearance evaluation in the novice dungeon, along with generous rewards, including that staff and the mask. That gave you the confidence to clear the dungeon even by yourself."
"Completely correct."
The girl's smile didn't falter.
Asuna watched the exchange, and for reasons she didn't want to admit, irritation began to rise in her chest. This girl had been smiling the entire time, speaking to Asagiri like they were already on the same wavelength, and she had even volunteered to join them. It felt wrong.
Asuna stepped forward and deliberately blocked Asagiri with her body. Her gaze turned cold as she stared straight into the girl's eyes.
"So even if you have the strength to clear alone, you still insisted on acting with us. That's suspicious. You must have malicious intentions, right?"
"You misunderstood."
The girl shook her head, then said something Asuna didn't expect at all.
"I didn't know you two were teammates before. I'm not interested in you. The only person I'm interested in is him. It has nothing to do with you."
"You…"
Asuna bit down hard, forcing herself to suppress the impulse to summon her sword and drive it straight through this girl with one clean thrust.
She turned her head toward Asagiri instead.
"This one definitely has a scheme. I suggest we leave her behind."
The girl didn't panic. Instead, she unhurriedly removed her mask.
A face appeared, fair and delicate, cute to the point of looking angelic. It was the kind of beauty that made people lower their guard without realizing it.
Then she put on an expression so pitiful it could crack someone's heart, like a wounded deer pleading for help. With navy purple eyes fixed on Asagiri, her soft voice trembled slightly.
"You wouldn't really abandon a cute girl like me alone in a hotel infested with Banshees, would you? If I run into a Banshee…"
Before she could finish, Asagiri cut her off without hesitation.
"Don't care. Not interested. If you die, you die. What does it have to do with me? Farewell."
Under the girl's stunned gaze, Asagiri turned to Asuna immediately.
"Let's go."
"Oh… okay."
Asuna followed, and the two of them walked away without looking back.
Behind them, the girl stared at their backs. For a moment, she stomped her foot in frustration and muttered under her breath.
"What the heck? They really abandoned me and just left like that? This is… No, that's not right."
Halfway through her muttering, her expression shifted. The anger didn't deepen.
Instead, she nodded, looking strangely satisfied.
"Faced with a request from such a cute girl like me, he didn't hesitate for even a second and just turned around and left. So he's not the indecisive, saintly type. He's an excellent Player…"
She tapped her cane lightly against the floor as she thought.
"Hmm. I need to find a way to show my value in this dungeon, then go find him and team up."
........
On the other side, Asuna and Asagiri moved down the hotel through the fire escape stairwell. Asuna suddenly stopped mid step, lips pressed together, worry showing in her eyes.
"We left her alone back there… is that really okay?"
Her voice softened, conflicted.
"I don't like her, but she didn't do anything hostile. She even took off her mask. In a place where a Banshee could appear at any time, can she really make it back to the room and regroup alive…?"
"You're tough on the outside but soft on the inside."
Asagiri said it plainly, then, without giving Asuna time to retort, asked a question of his own.
"You don't know her?"
"Huh? No, I don't." Asuna blinked, confused. "Why are you suddenly asking that?"
"Here's a hint," Asagiri said. "Her right eye is a prosthetic. Her left leg is a prosthetic limb."
"Right eye… left leg…"
Asuna murmured the words, and then something clicked. Her pupils widened.
"That girl… could she be that young lady?"
"Yes."
Asuna remembered immediately.
Five years ago, a case had been widely publicized, suspected to be a kidnapping. The victim was the then eleven year old young lady of the Iwanaga family, Iwanaga Kotoko.
The Iwanaga family was extremely wealthy. Even within Private Shuchiin Academy, they were considered one of the top noble families.
Back then, Kotoko had suddenly disappeared from her home. Her parents immediately reported it to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. Despite a full effort search, the police couldn't find a single solid clue.
Then, when the department was completely stuck, Kotoko suddenly appeared on a bench in a certain park.
Two weeks had passed since her disappearance.
When Kotoko was found, she had lost her right eye and her left leg.
Even stranger, after she woke up, she claimed she couldn't remember anything at all.
As a wealthy young lady herself, Asuna had never met Kotoko in person, but she had heard plenty about the incident. She never imagined she'd run into her inside a dungeon.
"Then… we should protect her even more!"
Asuna's worry sharpened into urgency.
How could someone like Kotoko, a disabled girl who needed a cane just to walk, survive in a dungeon this dangerous?
"I know you're in a hurry," Asagiri said, stopping her with a single sentence, "but don't be."
Asuna paused.
Asagiri continued, voice steady.
"Think carefully. A small disabled girl voluntarily signs up for a dungeon anyway. What does that tell you? It tells you she has nothing to fear."
His eyes narrowed slightly, thoughtful.
"As a Player, Iwanaga Kotoko either obtained a special class, unlocked a powerful exclusive talent, or possibly both."
He let the implication settle.
"Just like me."
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